This Magic Trick Might Fry Your Brain Like An Egg

Andrew Liszewski

Watching a six-minute YouTube video is a lot to ask when the internet serves up bite-size snippets of entertainment requiring just a few seconds of your attention. But close-up magician Eric Chien manages to squeezed so many impossible tricks into his 2018 World Championships of Magic-winning routine, you actually might wish it went on for a lot longer.

This article was originally published in November 2018. It’s still pure magic.

The International Federation of Magic Societies only holds its World Championships of Magic every three years, so you can imagine how many illusionists were vying for the grand prize. But Chien’s ‘Ribbon’ routine is a non-stop barrage of lightning-quick illusions, leaving you with little time to figure out what you just saw before his next trick baffles your brain all over again.

And because it’s all close-up, sleight of hand magic, you can’t just assume a team of hidden assistants are making it all happen backstage.